Triakis semifasciata, Leopard shark : fisheries, gamefish, aquarium

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Triakis semifasciata Girard, 1855

Leopard shark
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Image of Triakis semifasciata (Leopard shark)
Triakis semifasciata
Picture by Moreau, J.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) > Carcharhiniformes (Ground sharks) > Triakidae (Houndsharks) > Triakinae
Etymology: Triakis: tri-, from tres (L.), three; akis (Gr.), point, referring to each tooth consisting of one large central cusp flanked on by both sides by a small cusplet. (See ETYFish);  semifasciata: semi-, from semis (L.), half; fasciatus (L.), banded, referring to striking black saddle marks that cover only dorsal half of body. (See ETYFish).
More on author: Girard.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; brackish; demersal; depth range 0 - 156 m (Ref. 96339), usually ? - 6 m (Ref. 55312). Subtropical; 45°N - 19°N, 126°W - 105°W (Ref. 55312)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Eastern Pacific: Oregon, USA to the Gulf of California.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 109.8, range 100 - 129 cm
Max length : 198 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 244); 180.0 cm TL (female); common length : 160 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. ); max. published weight: 18.4 kg (Ref. 40637); max. reported age: 30 years (Ref. 6145)

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in shallow water from the intertidal to deeper waters, most commonly in enclosed muddy bays; including estuaries and lagoons (S. Wilson, pers. comm.). Prefer sandy areas, mud flats, and bottoms strewn with rocks near rocky reefs and kelp beds. Feed mainly on crabs, shrimps, bony fish, fish eggs, clam necks and innkeeper worms among a large variety of food in its diet. Form mixed schools. Ovoviviparous (aplacental), with 4 to 29 young in a litter. Utilized fresh or frozen for human consumption.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Females produce 6-24 young, which are 20-23 cm long at birth (Ref. 43439). Ovoviviparous, embryos feed solely on yolk (Ref. 50449).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Compagno, Leonard J.V. | Collaborators

Compagno, L.J.V., 1984. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 2 - Carcharhiniformes. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(4/2):251-655. Rome: FAO. (Ref. 244)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 18 December 2014

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: commercial
FAO - Fisheries: species profile; Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
Introductions
Stocks
Ecology
Diet
Food items
Food consumption
Ration
Common names
Synonyms
Metabolism
Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Spawning aggregation
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
Morphology
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Recruitment
Abundance
BRUVS
References
Aquaculture
Aquaculture profile
Strains
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Diseases
Processing
Nutrients
Mass conversion
Collaborators
Pictures
Stamps, Coins Misc.
Sounds
Ciguatera
Speed
Swim. type
Gill area
Otoliths
Brains
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Fisheries: species profile; Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 12.8 - 24, mean 20.4 °C (based on 131 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5312   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00229 (0.00119 - 0.00443), b=3.13 (2.97 - 3.29), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.7   ±0.2 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Very Low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (K=0.07-0.09; tm=11-21; tmax=30; Fec=4-12).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Very high vulnerability (80 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   High.